1. Field of the Invention
The present patent application generally relates to lighting technologies but more specifically to a system and method that uses an organic mirror tube as a mobile projector header, as means to bend light, and lastly, as means to increase the usage flexibility.
2. Description of the Related Art
Size is the main issue, preventing the mobile projector to have the usage flexibility, mainly the module size and shape for the LED light. The DMD driver part is fixed due to the basic light path structure. In the current product design, it forces the module to be placed parallel to the smart phone, and perpendicular to the wall. However, our preliminary user trial conducted concluded that the projection should be perpendicular to the smart phone, or in other words, the projection phone should be parallel to the wall, such that the user can see both the screen and the image on the wall at the same time, to ease the operation. This also allows the user to not have to “nod the head” all the time. There is one invention that uses the fiber optical cable[1] to separate the projection header from the conventional bulky desktop projector; however, the glass fiber used there is not flexible enough to be adopted in a smart phone situation. There are flexible plastic [2] or stiff glass [3] fiber solutions to assist the medical operation but it only transmits light and small images. All these patents are traditional systems, where there are some limitations on the mechanical size or image size. With an organic mirror tube scheme, not only is the image size increased, but also the physical space is saved. [1] William J. Prysner, “Fiber-optic viewgraph projector”, U.S. Pat. No. 5,208,891A, May 4, 1993.[2] THOMPSON, Christopher, C.; OU, Amy; LENGYEL, Balazs; CAMACHO, Andrew; JIRAPINYO, Pichamol, “System and method for part-task training box for flexible endoscopy”, US20140370474A1, Dec. 18, 2014.[3] Jiro Hirano, Tsuneshige Miyauchi, Kunihiro Mukai, Ryuji Tatsumi, Atsufumi Ueki, Shogo Yoshikawa, “Stereoscopic microscope with graded index fiber objective lenses”, U.S. Pat. No. 3,655,259A, Apr. 11, 1972.
With the fast pace of the commercialization of mobile devices, the continuing expansion of visible light sensors and the increasing usage of multimedia presentations, the projection demand has seen a steady increase. Researchers are diligently working towards disruptive technology that has not been previously given substantial attention, including 3D scanners, visible light 3D projections, virtual keyboards, virtual mice, virtual Internet of Things gesture recognition and virtual signature pen applications, etc.
As an essential requirement for projection systems, the organic mixed mirror header for mobile devices with flexible flat and curved tubes have been developed. The conventional projector system needs a glass fiber system. However, the new system utilizes organic hydro silicon gel header, which can move the flat or curved mirror around without any difficulty. This greatly enhances the flexibility for virtual projectors, keyboards, mice, pen designs, and allows the multiple accessory options for the end user.
In addition, it can be used in similar portable devices such as professional helmets as well.